The Light Mage
by uyay
Summary: Haruhi is back at Ouran and Daichi has switched sides. However, the STP is still after our favorite water mage and now, a new player enters the game, the infamous archangel. How will Haruhi deal with these new challenges and what will she do when the prophecy changes, yet again? Third in the Ouran Elemental series. Collaboration between don't-even-ask1 and uyay. Enjoy!
1. Chapter One- Not Over Yet

**Hey guys! It's don't-even-ask1 and uyay again! So here is chapter one of the promised third story of the Ouran Elements Series! Thanks for all of the requests for the third story, it was appreciated (and motivating…:D) So this pretty much picks up where we left off and hints at what Haruhi and the others will be facing in this new book. Anyways, readers/reviewers/recommenders/favoriters/follower s, arigato (thanks in Japanese)! Enjoy!**

Chapter One

Not Over Yet

Chinatsu looked around the empty room. She had received a note instructing her to meet here for a possible ally. Risky, she knew, but if it was for a possible ally, she would do anything. _Anything to take down the witch,_ she thought bitterly.

Chinatsu shivered against the cold of the room. "They need to turn off the AC," she muttered to herself.

"I suppose so," a eerie female voice said behind her.

Abruptly, Chinatsu spun around to find a tall, thin figure in the doorway. She had long black hair and mesmerizing green eyes. "Are you the ally?" she asked.

"No small talk?" the archangel mocked. "None?"

Chinatsu clenched her fists. She was too tired for this. "Are you or not?"

The archangel studied Chinatsu for some time before replying, "Yes I am. I also want revenge on the Fujioka girl and Daichi."

"Why?" Chinatsu asked. "What have they done for you?"

The archangel shrugged. "The boy promised me a show and I wasn't given one. I will get one even if I must make it myself."

"Archangels rarely deign down from their resting place, why are you really here?" Chinatsu continued.

The archangel sighed. "I was bored. Century after century, millennia after millennia, nothing ever happens."

Chinatsu resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "So will you assist me?"

"No," the archangel replied simply.

Chinatsu adjusted quickly to the archangel's surprising answer. "Then why bring me here?" she asked coldly. "To kill me?"

"No," again the archangel answered. "I wanted to tell you to stay out of my way."

"Out of your way?" Chinatsu asked incredulously. "Fat chance. I want the girl to suffer just as much as you do, if not more."

The archangel examined Chinatsu with cold green eyes, as if staring into her soul. "I see you do, but not for reasons of revenge. They are of jealousy."

"What?" Chinatsu asked, cheeks flushing red.

"Nothing, nothing," she answered distractedly.

Chinatsu raised her chin and willed the blush from her cheeks. "You better stay out of my way. I will make the girl and Daichi suffer. Not you."

"Yes, I suppose you will try," the archangel answered haphazardly. She glanced back at Chinatsu and said, "The light mage, Chinatsu. Open and easy to read, emotions written across your face. Your emotions get in the way of your path for revenge."

Chinatsu felt anger rise up within her. "What do you know?" she said indignantly.

"Everything." The archangel blinked. "I know everything about you, Daichi, even the Fujioka girl."

"Highly doubtful," Chinatsu mumbled.

In response, the archangel grinned. "I'd suppose you would think that."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Chinatsu asked.

"Oh that? Nothing, nothing for you to worry your pretty little head about."

_That's it,_ Chinatsu thought. "If you do not wish for my aide, I will be going."

Just as Chinatsu was about to leave, the archangel said sweeping an arm out to her, "That's it? No questions for me?"

Chinatsu stopped in the doorway. "Well if you know everything about me, give me the courtesy to know your name."

The archangel grinned. "Chou."

…..TIME SKIP…..

Daichi felt his consciousness return to him slowly. Eventually, his eyes fluttered open and he found himself looking up at a light. A throbbing pounded in his head and he groaned, putting a hand to it.

"He's awake!" a familiar voice shouted.

Daichi blinked as his vision focused on Haruhi who was leaning over him. "Hey, Daichi. How are you feeling?"

"Terrible headache," he muttered. "What happened?"

Haruhi leaned backward and let Daichi sit up. Once sitting up on the couch, he saw the entire host club, Nekozawa, and Renge standing around the area. Haruhi sat on the couch across from Daichi, soon joined by Mori. Mori wrapped a protective arm around Haruhi and glared at Daichi.

Ignoring her boyfriend's actions, Haruhi explained, "The archangel took your powers back. It made you pass out."

The memories flooded back to Daichi. The pain, the agony more like it. The power being ripped from his body, none too lightly. He could still feel the anger the archangel had put off. "She's angry," Daichi said.

"Who?" one of the twins asked, sitting next to Haruhi. The other twin remained standing next to Renge, not even glancing at the other.

"The archangel," Daichi muttered. "I promised her a show and she didn't get one. Now she's angry."

Haruhi shrugged. "What can she do?"

"A lot," Renge interrupted. "Haven't you ever heard of the archangel's wrath? She can make our lives a living hell."

"Nonsense!" Tamaki shouted. "I will protect my daughter and our new bad-turned-good neighbor!"

Haruhi ignored Tamaki and said, "Welcome to the host club. Ignore Tamaki and you'll be fine."

Daichi grinned at Haruhi and yawned. "How long was I out?"

"A day or so," Kyoya answered coolly.

"A day?" Daichi choked out, surprised.

Haruhi nodded. "You had us worried."

"Some more than others," the twin beside Renge muttered.

With a quick elbow jab from Renge, he shut up.

Daichi nodded and Hani skipped over from the kitchenette, a plate in his hand. "Here, Dai-kun!" Hani set the plate full of food down in front of Daichi.

Daichi's eyes widened in surprise before muttering, "Thank you, Hani."

Hani nodded before joining Mori on the couch opposite of Daichi. Daichi dug into the food once he noticed his ravenous appetite. Just when Daichi was getting to the eggs, the twin beside Renge said, "Renge and I kinda have something to say."

All pairs of eyes turned to them curiously except the other twin. "Which one are you again?" Daichi asked through a mouthful of food.

"Kaoru," the twin beside Renge said dryly.

Hani bounced in his seat. "What's your announcement?"

"We're dating," Renge said quickly and Kaoru took her hand in his.

The room erupted with congratulations.

Upset, Hikaru got up and stormed out of the room. "What's wrong with him?" Haruhi asked obliviously.

….Kaoru's Flashback…

_"Hikaru," Kaoru called into their bedroom. "I need to talk to you about something."_

_"Just a second," Hikaru's voice called from the closet. Kaoru walked to the edge of their bed and sat, his knee shaking up and down in nervousness. Hikaru emerged from the door to the closet with an armful of clothing and patterns. He set it down on his desk before sitting beside Kaoru on the bed. "What's up?"_

_Kaoru took a deep breath. "You remember Renge?"_

_"Of course," Hikaru laughed. He noticed Kaoru's bouncing leg for the first time. He put a hand on it, trying to slow it. In response, Kaoru's other leg started to bounce. "What's wrong?" he asked worriedly._

_"Nothing, it's just…" Kaoru trailed off._

_"What?" Hikaru asked, concern in his eyes._

_Kaoru took a deep breath before blurting, "We're dating!"_

_Hikaru's eyes went wide and he removed his hand. "You and Renge?" he asked emotionlessly._

_Kaoru nodded cautiously, not daring to say anything._

_Hikaru took a deep breath and looked at the window. "Why?"_

_"Because we like each other…" Kaoru answered slowly._

_Hikaru shook his head. "But haven't we always been enough for each other?"_

_Kaoru sighed and put a hand on his brother's shoulder. Hikaru knocked it away but Kaoru continued, "We're growing up, Hikaru. We need more people in our lives. We're not kids anymore."_

_Hikaru took a shaky breath. "But-"_

_"Hikaru," Kaoru said. "If you don't want me to date her, I won't."_

_Hikaru said nothing for a long time. Just when Kaoru was beginning to debate leaving him alone, Hikaru asked, "Does she make you happy?"_

_"What?" Kaoru asked confused._

_"Does she make you happy?" Hikaru asked, turning to face his brother._

_Kaoru nodded slowly, unable to read the emotion in his brother's eyes._

_Hikaru exhaled roughly. "Then you should date her."_

_"But you're not happy-"_

_"That doesn't matter. As long as you're happy, I'm happy." Hikaru took a deep breath. "I'll get used to it."_

_"You sure?" Kaoru asked cautiously, unwilling to get his hopes up only to have them crushed._

_Hikaru nodded. "I'm sure."_

_Kaoru leapt to his feet and hugged his brother. "Thank you so much Hikaru! I'm going to call Renge right now!"_

_Hikaru watched as his brother ran from the room, nearly giggling with happiness. Hikaru sighed wearily and muttered, "As long as Kaoru's happy, I'm happy. Even if I don't like it, I will pretend to for Kaoru."_


	2. Chapter Two- Mori and Daichi's Spar

**Hey guys! So here is the second chapter, it's Friday so we managed to squeeze this in, be happy. So the bad news is…. I just got writers block. Bad…. The good news is, don't-even-ask1 can still write, so even though this was my chapter she managed to write it for me….. I personally think she did a splendid job, and I thank her for it. So here it is… wish me luck but try not to jinx it, that would be my luck…. Enjoy, uyay.**

**So, it's me (don't-even-ask1). Okay, like uyay said, I've written two chapters for this story today, plus three chapters for my drabble series, so I'm all wrote out (does that make sense? Never mind, I don't care.) Anyhoo, writer's block strikes even the best of us, and I'm sure you guys are anticipating uyay's return as much as I am! Woo! I'm glad to help uyay out, and wish uyay luck! (No matter what she says, just do it.) See you guys soon! ~don't-even-ask1**

Chapter Two

Mori and Daichi's Spar

Daichi and Mori shot glares at each other, waiting for Haruhi to give them their signal. Kyoya had suggested that they spar with Daichi so they knew what level he was at. Mori went first, his eagerness to fight the boy hidden behind his usual stoic mask.

"Dark vs. Earth, your match starts… Now!" Haruhi shouted.

Mori created an orb of earth and sent it flying at Daichi's face. Daichi quickly created a shield of darkness and deflected the orb. It was sent flying back at Mori who merely stretched out his arm and re-absorbed the earth.

Daichi ground his teeth and sent out several streams of darkness in an attempt to capture the earth mage's arms and pin them to his sides. He knew he was pushing his power to control so many at once but he would defeat the earth mage no matter what.

Mori was surprised at the many streams of darkness but quickly surrounded himself with walls of earth. The darkness ran into the walls and come to a halt in front of it. The walls them formed around the darkness, trapping it inside. Mori could feel the sweat forming on his forehead and could feel the strain of controlling so much earth at once but he'd be damned before he let the dark mage defeat him in battle. Mori shrunk the earth until Daichi was forced to relieve his hold on the darkness.

Daichi resisted the urge to sink to his knees and created an orb of darkness in his palm. He shot it with the little energy he had left. Mori was slow to dodge and the orb grazed his side. Mori cried out and gripped at his side.

When Mori looked up, a look of pure fury was in his eyes. He used the anger to create five orbs and fired all of them towards Daichi. Daichi's eyes widened as he attempted to dodge them all. He successfully dodged the first three and deflected the fourth with a darkness shield, but he took the last one in the shoulder. Daichi gasped in pain and was knocked backward on his butt. Instinct caused Daichi to immediately roll backwards onto his feet and jump back.

Daichi narrowly missed the stream of earth that shot through the spot where he had just been a second ago. Daichi ground his teeth and glared at Mori. Mori glared back and sent another stream of earth towards Daichi despite everything in his body telling him that he was overexerting himself.

Daichi matched Mori's stream with his own darkness stream and the two's power met in the middle of them, not moving. Mori poured all his energy into the stream, deciding that this would be the deciding factor in their fight.

Daichi directed all of his energy into the stream as well, but the balance of power never shifted. They were equal in power, fighting skill, and experience. Both hated the other for it.

Daichi's and Mori's power was decreasing at a steady rate and Haruhi could feel it. She saw the sweat pouring off both men's bodies and frowned. _Those idiots_, she thought.

Suddenly a wave was created between the two and pushed both of them back. They both hit the wall roughly and the water froze them there. "I don't know what you two are doing but you need to knock it off!" Haruhi shouted at them. "What the hell was that?"

Mori looked away from Haruhi's hard gaze, guilt filling him. Daichi was Haruhi's close friend and no matter how much he hated it, he shouldn't hurt him.

Daichi, on the other hand, met Haruhi's gaze fully. "Sparring," he answered simply. "Isn't that what we were supposed to do?"

Hani was tempted to jump in but decided to stay out of this._ Haru-chan looks really mad,_ he thought.

Haruhi's eyes glinted dangerously. "Yes, but you aren't supposed to try and kill each other!"

"Actually," Kyoya cut in. "That's what you almost did when you first came here, remember?"

Haruhi's sharp gaze turned to Kyoya. "No! I didn't try to kill you! You guys attacked me and I froze you! There's a difference!" Kyoya shrunk back slightly at Haruhi's furious stare. Though he'd never admit it, the water mage scared him sometimes.

Satisfied that Kyoya was put in his place, Haruhi turned back to Daichi. "You aren't supposed to kill each other! You are supposed to _spar_!"

This time, Daichi couldn't hold Haruhi's blaming stare. "Sorry," he mumbled.

"Do you two have any idea how much energy you were using?" Haruhi continued. "It could have killed the both of you, or permanently damaged your power!" She alternated between glaring at them.

"Sorry, Haruhi," Mori muttered.

"Yeah," Daichi offered. "Sorry."

Haruhi ground her teeth before exhaling all of her anger in one breath. She un-froze the water and briskly walked to Mori's side, putting a delicate hand on his wound. He inhaled sharply. Haruhi muttered, "Come on. Move to the couch."

Mori moved stiffly towards the couch with the aid of Haruhi. Daichi was left at the floor, seething with anger as he watched Mori walk off with Haruhi. "Damn earth mage," he muttered as he started poking at his wound.

Mori sat down on the couch and held in a groan. The effects of overusing his power were setting in. His muscles were locking up, his head was throbbing, and his thoughts were becoming muddled. Haruhi placed a small hand on Mori's wound and closed her eyes. She directed her healing energy into his wound and started to repair the tissue. Once she was done, she opened her eyes and saw Mori staring intently at her. "What?" she asked.

"Nothing," he answered quickly.

Haruhi raised an eyebrow but said nothing more. She sat beside Mori and guided his head into her lap as he laid down. "Get some sleep," she instructed softly.

"Can't with the migraine," he muttered quietly.

Haruhi heard him and drew some water out of the air. She placed her water covered hand over his temple and gently instructed the water to massage his head and send out good feeling hormones.

Mori groaned in contentment as his headache began to release and the throbbing stopped. "Thanks," he slurred as sleep started to take him.

"Sleep," Haruhi instructed softly as she coaxed the water to release sleeping inducing hormones.

Mori didn't reply, but instead slipped off into a deep sleep with Haruhi gently massaging his head with one hand and running her hand through his hair with the other.

Daichi sat with Kyoya and the others, tending his own wounds. He grumbled as he watched Haruhi with the sleeping Mori in her lap. Tamaki was protesting letting his daughter be with the neighbor but eventually Renge settled him down enough for him to quietly talk about the next idea for Monday Host Club.

Renge sat hand in hand with Kaoru while Hikaru struggled not to notice his twin holding hands with her. He sat talking intently with Hani about something or other. Nekozawa was reading a book with a dark hand bound cover and offered no explanation as to what was in it. No one asked.

Kyoya typed away on his laptop about who knew what. Daichi leaned his head back, wondering why he strived for Haruhi's attention, and let sleep overtake him.

…..

Kaoru squeezed Renge's hand as she glanced over at Haruhi and Mori. She muttered, "She really loves him, huh?"

Kaoru nodded. "Yeah."

Hikaru shot the two of them a glance but it didn't have as much malice as it did yesterday. Renge smiled at him and Hikaru quickly turned away. She sighed. "He hates me."

"Not necessarily," Kaoru started.

"Yes he does," Renge interrupted. "I stole his brother from him."

Kaoru sighed. "He'll get over it. He's already doing better."

Renge nodded and let her head rest on the back of the couch. "It's all too stressful."

"What do you mean?" Kaoru asked curiously.

Renge sighed and closed her eyes. "The prophecy, dating, Hikaru, Daichi, all of that crap is just too much sometimes."

Kaoru chuckled. "I understand."

"How can we?"

Kaoru raised an eyebrow. "Can you be a bit more specific?"

Renge opened her eyes and looked intensely at Kaoru. "How can we bring peace to the world?"

"With Haruhi's leadership," Kaoru answered immediately.

Renge exhaled roughly. "Haruhi has no idea what to do. She's told me." Renge chuckled coldly. "Haruhi has no idea how she's to bring peace to the world, let alone bring the water element back to full power."

"I thought her just being back increased the water elemental power?" Kaoru asked confused.

Renge shook her head. "Then why haven't water elemental mages been getting more power? She has no idea what she's supposed to do."

The two sat in a thoughtful silence before Kaoru said, "Well, she has Mori."

Renge smiled. "Yeah, she does. He means everything to her."

"I noticed," Kaoru said grinning.

Renge let her head fall on Kaoru's shoulder. "I'm tired," she mumbled.

"Get some sleep then," Kaoru said. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Promise?" Renge asked, a yawn interrupting her halfway through the word.

Kaoru nodded. "Promise."

Renge fell asleep, comforted by the warm presence beside her.


	3. Chapter Three- Love You Takashi

**Authors' Note: We're back! We (uyay and don't-even-ask1) bring you the THIRD chapter in the THIRD book! Awesome huh? Anyhoo, uyay has gotten over her case of writer's block and is back! don't-even-ask1 thinks she successfully wrote this chapter, what do the readers think? Special thanks to all the reviewers, followers, and favoriters. You guys are our inspiration and motivation to keep writing (plus we love to write, but you guys still rock!). Keep it up and we hope you enjoy this chapter!**

Chapter Three

Love You Takashi

Haruhi groaned as another thud distracted her from her studying. She may be the 'prophesied one' but she needed to pass at school for mortals as well. She looked back to the large book on physics when she heard a crash. Now she was mad. She slammed the book closed and walked out of her apartment to the one next door. She pounded on the door, ready to give whoever an earful.

"Yes?" To her surprise, it was no other than Daichi that opened the door. He looked as surprised to see her as she was to see him, but he must have known that she lived here…_ Shouldn't he?_ "Haruhi-chan…."

"Daichi-kun…. Why are you here?"

"I'm moving in here…." He held up a box of stuff as proof.

"So that's what the noise was…" she murmured.

"Sorry about that," he said sheepishly. He pushed the door open further. "Do you want to come in?"

"That's alright… Do you want help?"

"Are you sure? You look like you are busy." Haruhi remembered the large glasses on her nose and the book she held under one of her arms.

"It can wait." She followed him inside and set her book down in a corner away from the pile of boxes.

"There's just a few more in my old mansion," he explained. She hurriedly followed him down the street where they grabbed four more boxes, two each.

"So you're the one moving in next door…"

"Yeah. By the way, did you need something? You didn't sound so happy when you knocked on the door." She looked to the side, embarrassed.

"I was studying. What was the crash?"

"Oh! I accidentally dropped one of the boxes." He shifted the boxes he was holding and smiled at her. "So we're neighbors now!"

"Yeah," Haruhi suppressed a giggle at his excitedness. Sometimes she wondered if the nitrous oxide had fully wore off. "You'd think we'd get tired of each other."

"You don't?" Haruhi shrugged at Daichi's question.

"You're my friend. And not to mention my ally now. You're calmer than most of the others, too, which helps." He laughed before stopping suddenly and looking at her.

"I don't know why you are so forgiving of me. The others hate me, and I don't blame them. I almost killed you. I would have if not for what you said." She smiled weakly at him and motioned with her head for them to go into the apartment building which they had stopped in front of.

When they reached his apartment and put the boxes down, she grabbed his hand to get his attention. He felt his heart skip a beat as he looked into the chocolate brown eyes he came to realize he did love.

"You are not your father. I knew that." She looked up and sighed before continuing. "For some reason a greater being put me on this earth. For some reason they thought I would be a good choice to bring peace back. And so, for some reason, this is my destiny." She looked back at him and gave another forced smile. "I don't know why your father thought peace was such a bad thing, but nevertheless he thought he would kill me. He killed my mom, he scared me physically and emotionally. But this is besides the point. It is my destiny, so I live. You are not your father, your father wouldn't have hesitated to kill me the first time he saw me. Or the gotten to know me. Or hesitated again when he had his hand and power at my throat. You did. I know that you wouldn't have killed me, it just took you a little longer." She squeezed his hand and let it drop. "I never thought there was anything to be forgiven. I never had reason to hate you. Destiny is a selfish thing, thinking it can control our every whim. It does what it may. I have learned to accept that."

Daichi looked into her sad eyes. He couldn't imagine what it felt like. The saying 'the world on your shoulders' came to mind, and in this case, it was true. Everyone depended on her, whether they knew it or not. "You know, the last time I asked you to play Minecraft you fell asleep on me," he hinted. She laughed, secretly grateful for the change in topics. "I could dig the stuff out I could set it up…"

"If you know which box the game stuff is in why don't you just come over to my apartment. You could probably use a break from all the moving." He nodded and grabbed the stuff.

"So why an apartment?" Haruhi asked as he set the xbox 360 up.

"It was cheap."

"Yeah, but you are rich, not to mention you already have what, ten mansions?"

"Twelve," he looked up at her with a smirk. "I have twelve mansions, all inherited from my father. And yes, I am rich." the plopped down on the sofa as he handed her a remote and selected Minecraft. "But the mansions bring back memories I would rather not remember."

"And the money?" She started fist fighting a zombie and won. "Yes!"

"It would alert the STP of where I am." He shot at a creeper with a bow. "Awesome!"

Haruhi watched as Daichi shot at the creeper while another creeped up behind him. "Daichi!"

…

Mori froze outside as he heard Haruhi yell Daichi's name. Then he scowled, shoving the door open. Haruhi and Daichi were sitting on the couch while beating monsters up on Minecraft. He relaxed more as he realized how far away they were sitting from each other. They didn't seem to notice that he had walked in so he crept up behind them. He bent down next to Haruhi's ear.

"Boo!" Haruhi jumped and turned around, a stream of water pinning Mori to the wall until she realised that it was only him. She relaxed and Mori landed back on his feet. He rubbed his aching arms.

"Mori-senpai…. You surprised me!" she muttered.

"Yeah, remind me never to do that again…" he told her. She shook her head.

"It's your own fault, just remember that." Daichi paused the game and stood up, but sat back down when Haruhi shook her head at him. "Keep playing, I meant it when I said you could use a break." She turned back around and stood up. "Me and Mori are going for a walk."

She pulled Mori outside and they started walking towards the park. "You really trust him alone in your apartment?" he asked her.

"Yes. But if it makes you feel better there are security cameras." He looked at her and raised a confused eyebrow. "When we moved in Kyoya had them installed so dad wouldn't be so concerned about me being alone with everything going on," explained. Mori nodded. He put his arm around her and pulled her close.

"It makes me feel better. Why was he there in the first place?"

"He doesn't feel comfortable in his mansions and spending the family fortune would alert the STP so he bought the apartment next door. It was going cheap. I went to tell him to be quiet, not knowing it was him, but when I saw who it was I helped him bring the last of the boxes. We decided to take a break and play Minecraft at my apartment so he wouldn't have to find everything."

He pulled her over to an ice cream stand, and to her protest bought them each a cone. "I still don't trust him," he sighed. "It's not that I think he will hurt you…"

"You still think he might have more than a friend feelings for me," Haruhi finished for him. He nodded and she stopped, turning to him. "Relax. I don't know how he feels, but even if he does feel they way you think he does-"

"You love me." She laughed.

"And only you." He wiped the strawberry ice cream off of her nose.

"I love you too. Does this mean we are dating?" She smiled and nodded. "Then I have a request." She scrunched up her nose but didn't protest. "Call me Takashi. Not senpai, not Mori, Takashi." Her eyes widened in surprise. "Please." She gaped, and he leaned down to kiss her. She melted into him, wrapping her arms around him and smiling into the kiss. He pulled back and brushed some of her short bangs out of her face. "I want you to call me Takashi. I want the whole world to know you're mine." She smirked.

"I love you too, Takashi."


	4. Chapter Four- Confessions

**Authors' Notes: uyay and I are back! Chapter four...awesome isn't it? In this chapter we have some Chinatsu and Daichi interaction...interesting…. Anyway! Thanks to all reviewers/followers/favoriters! Please recommend our story and continue to support us! You guys rock! ~don't-even-ask1**

**Hey guys! So here is the fourth instalment of The Light Mage…. And low and behold it has some light mage action in it… Her name is Chinatsu (ring a bell) and as don't-even-ask1 said, she has some interaction with Daichi. Anyways, thank you for all of your support! Read and enjoy, uyay**

Chapter Four

Confessions

Hikaru watched as Renge headed out of the club room, saying she had to go to the bathroom. His brother said a quick goodbye to her and she was gone, turning right down the hallway.

After several moments, Hikaru stood and followed her out, trying to attract as little attention as possible. Kaoru was in an intense conversation with Haruhi about favorite books, so he snuck out, earning only the attention from the Shadow King, but Hikaru doubted that Kyoya would sell him out.

Hikaru walked briskly down the hall coming to a stop beside the girls' bathroom door. He leaned against the wall, waiting for Renge. After a minute, the door opened and Renge walked out. "Renge," Hikaru said.

Renge jumped and out of pure instinct, brought her arm up to strike him. Only when she realized it was Hikaru did she stop. "What are you doing out here?" she asked curiously.

Hikaru stood up straight and walked in front of Renge, accenting how much taller he was than her. Renge didn't back down however and met his gaze full on. Hikaru said, "I want to make sure you know what you're getting into with my brother."

"What do you mean?" Renge asked suspiciously, looking around Hikaru back at the club door.

Hikaru moved to block her view. "I want to make sure you don't hurt my brother."

Renge's eyes widened. "Um, I won't…" she said uneasily.

"Really?" Hikaru asked, unconvinced. "Because by that reaction, I don't believe you."

Renge resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "I genuinely like your brother. I won't hurt him."

"You say that now," Hikaru continued. "But can you promise that a couple months from now?"

"Yes," Renge replied without hesitation. "I like Kaoru. I would never hurt him."

Hikaru nodded once. "Good. Keep that attitude. Because if you don't…" He leaned down to whisper in Renge's ear, "You'll hurt twice as much as him."

Renge swallowed and tried to act like she wasn't scared of the fire mage though in all reality, she was. He was really good at the terrifying big brother act. "Got it," she gulped.

Hikaru pulled back and stared at her one more time before turning around and striding back into the club room. She left him enter before walking back into the bathroom. She walked to the sink and looked at herself in the mirror, thinking intensely.

_Hikaru is very protective of his brother,_ she thought as she turned on the faucet. _Has he always been like that?_ She searched her memory, running her hands through the icy water. _Yes, I guess he has. They mentioned they've only had each other since they were young…_

Renge sighed and cupped her hands to gather the water in them. She leaned down and splashed her face with water._ Must have been hard...having no friends._ She looked back up at her reflection, her face now dripping with water. _At least they had each other._

Renge turned off the water and grabbed a paper towel out of the tray. She dried her face and Kaoru appeared on her mind. Despite herself, she smiled at the thought of him. He was different from his brother, if you looked closely. It was a good different.

Renge crumpled the towel and threw it into one of the trashcans before heading back out into the hallway. She headed to the club room and took calming breaths._ Kaoru can't know,_ she thought. _He'd have a fit…_

Renge opened the door and sat beside Kaoru, listening to him talking intently with Haruhi about a new book their favorite author just published. He reached for her hand and squeezed it gently. Renge smiled before settling back against the couch. She closed her eyes and tried to relax. She could feel a stare on her and knew Hikaru was looking at her. Reluctantly, she opened her eyes and saw Hikaru staring at her with a smile on his face.

_That's new_, she thought to herself. Hikaru looked to his brother and his smile grew. Renge let herself smile a little before closing her eyes again._ Maybe he's finally getting over us…_

…..TIME SKIP…..

Daichi closed the door to his apartment and locked it. He sighed and trudged to his couch, setting his bag on the table as he passed. Tired, he collapsed onto the couch and reached for the remote to the TV. He pressed the power button and waited for the TV to boot up. His eyelids were starting to droop when he heard a noise from the kitchen.

Daichi was immediately awake and listening for more sounds. None followed. Cautiously, he stood and debated calling Haruhi before he remembered she was going out on a date with Mori that night. Daichi created a dark orb in his palm before silently treading towards the kitchen.

Daichi looked into the kitchen, ready for an unexpected attack. Just when he was ready to send out a darkness probe, a sudden light filled the kitchen. But Daichi could tell it wasn't just light, it was elemental power...one that he recognized. "Chinatsu," he said turning around to the light source.

Chinatsu stood in the doorway to the TV room, holding a light orb in her palm. "Hello, Dai-kun. How are you doing?" she asked mockingly.

"Much better than I was at the STP," he replied coldly.

Chinatsu's face fell and Daichi immediately regretted his statement. "What are you doing here?" he asked. "Come to kill me?"

Chinatsu shook her head. "I'm here to bring you back."

Daichi sighed and shook his head. "I'm not going back. I belong here now."

"Daichi," Chinatsu started tiredly. "You belong with us...the STP."

Daichi looked away from Chinatsu's intense gaze and asked, "Can you get rid of your light orb? You made your dramatic entrance...can you turn it off?"

Chinatsu rolled her eyes and turned off the orb. "Big baby," she muttered.

"Shut up," Daichi replied out of habit.

They grinned at each other during their familiar banter before the grins faded abruptly. Chinatsu said quietly, "You need to come home, Daichi."

"No," he replied. He opened the fridge and got out two cokes and handed one to Chinatsu. At her questioningly look, he said, "Well, if you're not here to kill me, might as well get comfortable."

Chinatsu rolled her eyes and twisted off the cap. She took a sip, watching Daichi. She said, "Thanks."

"No problem." Daichi took a large sip of his. "How did you find out where I lived?"

"Hacked into the security cameras," Chinatsu replied nonchalantly. "I overheard you and Haruhi talking."

Daichi smiled. "You were always good with computers."

Chinatsu gaped, appalled. "I still am!"

Daichi grinned at her and said, "I know."

"We need you," Chinatsu said quietly. "I, I need you."

Daichi looked at her. "What?"

"You need to come home. Back to me," she said again, looking away sheepishly. "I've always liked you Daichi. You were always strong, the son of the leader."

"Umm…"

"I don't really expect you to like me back," Chinatsu said quietly. "It was just a hope…"

Daichi sighed. "I'm sorry Chinatsu…"

Chinatsu bit her lip and looked up at the ceiling, holding back tears. "I know...you love the water mage girl."

Daichi ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know Chinatsu...but-"

"I get it," Chinatsu said, standing abruptly. "I'll stay out of your hair."

"Chinatsu," Daichi said, rising as well.

Chinatsu shook her head. "I'll get over it, and I'll try to keep the STP off your path but no promises. They are very tricky and un-trusting people."

Daichi nodded. "Thanks."

"You, you should also keep an eye out for the archangel. She still wants a show…" Chinatsu said quietly.

Daichi raised an eyebrow. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because, because I don't want you hurt...but at the same time…" Chinatsu shook her head. "Never mind. I'll get out of here."

Chinatsu headed to the door and was stopped by a hand on her arm. She turned around to find Daichi looking at her intently. She blushed at his hard gaze and looked away. He sincerely said, "Thank you, Chinatsu."

Chinatsu nodded and with one last pull of her arm, was gone. Daichi stood looking at the door for a moment before finally snapping out of it and heading back to his soda. He took another sip and stared at the one Chinatsu had left. _She likes me…_ Daichi thought. "Now what?" he asked out loud, knowing no one had an answer, not even him.


	5. Chapter Five- The Second Kiss

**Authors' Note: Hello...did you miss us? Please don't hate us...uyay had to take a break and don't-even-ask1 was happy for a week off to get caught up on schoolwork. But, we are back! Woo! So here's the FIFTH chapter! Please don't hate us and thanks to all those who reviewed/favoriters/followers! You guys rock! Keep it up and keep reading! We hate to say this after just getting back, but now is the time when updates are going to get really slow…. They will still be there, we promise, but we are getting to the point where homework is piling up, we have meetings after school, and in uyay's case, school dances. Also, uyay's dad is having problems with getting computers to his house…. But for now, we present the FIFTH chapter! Enjoy!**

Chapter Five

The Second Kiss

Haruhi brushed her short bangs out of her face and looked through the peephole of the apartment door. Daichi was on the other side, surprising her by looking nervous. She opened the door slowly, and took in the strange sight. Daichi had his hands in his pockets and even as the door opened refused to make eye contact with her. Haruhi had been friends with Daichi long enough to know that this was not a good sign.

"Can I help you, Daichi-kun?" Haruhi asked, squinting her eyes at him.

"Can I come in?" he mumbled, his voice so quiet she could barely hear him. She stepped to the side and motioned for him to take a seat on the loveseat. He complied, though he still refused to look at her. She sat down next to him, legs folded under her and eyes on him.

"What's wrong?" she asked, the tone stating that 'nothing' was not an answer.

Daichi finally looked at her, staring into her eyes as though trying to search her soul. He pushed forwards, pressing his lips to hers. She would have pulled back, would have yelled and screamed at him but something held her back. It wasn't like she was enjoying being kissed by him, but something was on his mind, and she would find out what. She knew that they were friends and she could tell that something was...off with him.

She was sitting there, waiting for him to pull away, when her phone went off. Daichi jerked away, looking to the side while his cheeks flamed. She looked at her phone, and duly noted that the caller ID read 'Mori' before shoving it back in her pocket.

"Mori?" he suggested, and she nodded. "You didn't answer…."

"He can wait." At Daichi's skeptical gaze, she added, "I want answers. You kissed me, again."

And it felt….. strange…. Daichi added in his mind. "That's a statement, not a question. And you didn't pull back."

"The suggested question was why. I didn't feel the need. I didn't kiss back. You're my friend, and I would think you know better than to think I would want to be more than that. Besides, you know I have a boyfriend that I love, so I figured that was you thinking and trying to figure something out." Daichi nodded, looking to the side and annoying Haruhi. "Well why!?" she gave a frustrated shout. "Why do you feel the need to kiss me every time you have a problem? First it's because you have a problem with me, and now….. why?"

"Because, because…" he drifted off, looking at her again. "I thought… The first time, it was an act…"

"And this time wasn't?" Haruhi pressed.

"Let me finish! It was an act, but it felt… right, somehow. And then when I heard how guilty you were about what happened! I just…. I thought…. I don't know!" he sighed angrily.

"You're telling me…." Haruhi paused. "This is your crummy version of a confession?! Not to mention I have a boyfriend!" As if on cue, her phone rang with a text message from said boyfriend.

'Why aren't you answering my calls?' Haruhi read.

'Sorry, I've been busy. I need to do a few more chores and studying, I'll call you later.'

"What did you tell him?" Daichi asked after she sent a text back.

"Just that I needed to do some chores and studying. I don't need him freaking out about this," she looked up from her phone and glared at him before adding, "yet." He shrunk back.

"It's not a confession," he continued where they left off. "I'm just, so, confused," he fumbled for the right words.

"Why? You know, you can talk to me," Haruhi encouraged him, putting a supporting hand on his knee.

"I got a visit from Chinatsu…" he confessed, glancing to the side like a boy caught red handed. Haruhi's eyes grew wide.

"The STP bitch?"

"No!" he shouted defensively. "I mean, yes, but, she's not as bad as you think. She was my friend for a long time before we even started thinking about training for the STP. Our parents were friends. We grew up together." He smiled softly before it grew into a frown. "Both of her parents were STP agents, meaning you killed both of her parents." He continued before Haruhi could protest. "I know you didn't mean it, that you wish there was another way. I've forgiven you, and though I still miss my dad, I've moved on. Chinatsu, Chinatsu couldn't. She's an only child, her other family is distant, I'm really all she had left, and now-"

"Now I've taken you from her as well," Haruhi finished for him. She had been picking at her hands, but now she looked at him with a sad smile. "What did she have to say?"

"She's trying to stall the others, and she wanted me to know that the archangel is after us."

"We knew about the archangel, at least we assumed it, and the stalling is news…. Let me reword my question. What did she have to say that would distress you so much that you would kiss me, again? I told you, you're my friend now. You can tell me."

He sighed and explained, "She told me that she had a crush on me, that, that she likes me. I thought that I liked you, but…"

"Now you aren't so sure." Haruhi smiled, surprising him. "That's so sweet," she cooed, leting what little romantic side she had show. He smiled.

"You think so?"

"I mean, I'm sorry, but I have Mori-"

"And can't return my feelings."

Haruhi nodded. "But Chinatsu… I'm not entirely convinced that she's trustworthy. Even if she stalls the STP, she won't give up on revenge or leading them… But even so, if she loves you and you love her-"

"No one said anything about love!" Daichi interjected, earning an eyeroll from Haruhi.

"Whatever! The point is, as long as she isn't trading one or both of our souls over to the devil, or something evil like that, you have my support. Just know that I support my friends, first." He nodded and smiled. "And don't forget, I will say it again, you are part of that group of friends."

"I'm not sure how I feel about her, but thanks." Haruhi nodded.

"I'm just glad you could open up to me." They both stood, Haruhi ready to show him out, when she turned and glared at him. "Oh, and no matter what the problem is, don't kiss me. I will send my boyfriend, the kendo champion, need I remind you, after you. If you have a problem you can talk to me, but don't you dare kiss me." He shuddered and nodded, leaving quietly and peacefully.


	6. Chapter Six- She's Watching

**Authors' Notes: So, we're back. Again. Like mentioned last chapter (and many before that), updates will be fewer. School and life get in the way...sadly. Believe it or not, uyay and I have a life outside of writing. Heh, plus I've recently had a lack of creation...not necessarily writer's block but definitely something blocking my writing. I will work on it. So anyhoo, the SIXTH chapter! Enjoy! ~don't-even-ask1**

**We're back, be excited please! So here is the sixth chapter! For those few that are reading my other book, The Things We Thought We Knew, that might get finished tomorrow as I don't have school… As for this story, don't-even-ask1 still has school, sorry. Anyhoo, here is the SIXTH chapter of awesomeness. You know, we take turns writing chapters and editing, so I think this is the first time that both of us have really written in one chapter…. I don't know if you can tell the difference, though. Let us know what you think! With school and stuff, updates WILL be slower, you'll just have to deal and be patient. If it makes you feel any better, I can promise that we won't be those peeps that only update every month if you're lucky. So here it is. Enjoy, uyay**

Chapter Six

She's Watching

"See you tomorrow, Daichi-kun," Haruhi said as Mori led her out the door.

Daichi waved. "Bye, Haru-chan!"

As usual, Mori made no indication of Daichi's presence and the two left Daichi alone in the host club room. Daichi sighed and looked around the empty room. He headed towards the couch and flopped down on it. He put his feet up on the coffee table and let his eyes slide shut. Lately, he had been staying up late, thinking and unable to fall asleep.

"Well," a voice said, startling him out of his trance. "You look comfortable here."

Daichi shot up and had a dark stream travelling to the origin.

Before it reached the figure, the archangel raised her hand and the darkness fell useless to the floor. "What type of welcome is that?" she asked sarcastically.

Daichi tensed and asked coldly, "What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you." Chou walked towards Daichi slowly. "I didn't expect to find you here, at Ouran."

"What do you want?" Daichi took a step away from the approaching archangel.

Chou smiled coldly. "Do you think I came here to kill you?" she asked humorously. At Daichi's clenching of his fists, she smirked. "I'm not, if you're wondering. I have an offer for you."

"An offer?" Daichi asked suspiciously.

Chou took another step forward. "I know you still don't like the Fujioka girl. You two were born enemies. You can't get over your hatred so quickly."

"No," Daichi answered simply.

Chou took another step, placing her directly in front of him. "Admit it," she whispered. "You're here to kill her. To gain her trust, and then tear the host club apart from the inside."

Daichi clenched his teeth. "No," he growled.

"I'm here to help you," she said quietly. Chou placed a soft hand on Daichi's shoulder and dragged it towards his neck. "I can give you some assistance."

Icy daggers followed Chou's touch. "Assistance?"

"I want you to kill the girl," she said emotionlessly. "I'd be willing to give you back the power after you commit the deed."

"You want me," Daichi started. "to kill Haruhi so I can get my power back?"

Chou smiled evilly. "Smart boy."

Daichi's mind raced. _There's no way I could ever hurt Haruhi. She gave me a second chance at my life._ He took a deep breath._ But I can't just let this chance slip away. Chou is opening up…. This could be used to my advantage_. Daichi grinned mischievously.. "I like it."

Chou smiled smugly and turned suddenly. "I'll give you your powers back once you kill the girl."

"Wait," Daichi said, reaching out to her. _Archangels are so mysterious. I can learn more about her._ "How can I beat Haruhi? She still obviously has more power than me."

"Find the home of your power. Find what gives you your power."

"What do you mean?" Daichi asked curiously.

Chou sighed. "You are a dark elemental mage. Where do you think your power comes from?"

Daichi shrugged. "My father I suppose."

Chou laughed coldly. "No," she said with amusement. "Your power comes from sadness and misery. There's plenty of that around nowadays." She raised an eyebrow challengingly. "Use that." She walked backwards towards the couch. "I'll be watching, Daichi-san. Take care."

Daichi watched as Chou disintegrated into a cloud of dust. _This could be interesting._

…...TIME SKIP…..

Haruhi watched as Tamaki and the twins argued about something. The club was gathered in her apartment to discuss attack ideas. As usual, they had diverted from the usual reason and were discussing the new school that had popped up in America. From that, the twins had said that they should ship Tamaki off to America and the argument had taken off from there.

"You want more tea?" Mori asked Haruhi, interrupting her thoughts.

Haruhi smiled. "Sure, Takashi."

Mori smiled at the use of his name and poured Haruhi another cup of tea. He kissed the top of her head and said, "How was your day today?"

"Good," Haruhi answered. "What about you?"

Mori shrugged. "For the most part."

Haruhi raised an eyebrow.

Mori sighed. "During third period there was a fiasco with a spoon and chocolate. I don't want to talk about it."

Haruhi giggled. "But now I'm curious."

A knock at the door interrupted Mori's response. He sighed and said, "That's Daichi isn't it?"

Haruhi nodded and patted Mori's head. "Play nice."

Mori raised an eyebrow. "Don't I always?"

Haruhi rolled her eyes and walked to her door. She opened it to find Daichi standing at the door fidgeting with his hands. "Hello, Fujioka-san."

Haruhi was taken back at the use of her last name and honorific. "Hello," she managed.

"Are the others inside?" he asked, gesturing inside the door.

Haruhi nodded. "Yeah. Come on in."

Haruhi stood aside and Daichi pushed past her into the house. "Thanks," he muttered.

Daichi entered the room and looked around at the club members. After a quick internal debate, he sat next to Kyoya at the end of the couch. Kyoya bowed his head in acknowledgement. "Hello, Daichi-san."

Daichi nodded back. "Kyoya-senpai."

"Daichi-kun!" Hani said loudly. Daichi tried not to flinch. "You're late! Where were you?"

Daichi thought back to Chou. "Um...I fell asleep."

"You should sleep more," Haruhi suggested walking into the room. She sat beside Mori and leaned into his side.

Daichi rolled his eyes. "I'll keep that in mind." _She's probably watching…. I can feel it…_

Haruhi raised an eyebrow at his reply. "Are you okay?"

Hani paused mid bite and said with a mouth full of cake, or at least they assumed he said, "Yeah, Dai-chan, you've been acting weird…"

"I'm just tired. I've been thinking….." Daichi drifted off. _I have to be careful about what I say..._

"What about?" Kyoya inquired, looking up from his notebook. Daichi's eyes met Haruhi's and he had to force himself not to bow under her heavy stare.

"Things." Haruhi rolled her eyes at Daichi's reply. She looked down at the watch on her wrist.

"We really didn't decide anything, so you're good for now, Daichi-san," Haruhi informed him, following suit in means of honorifics. "However," she continued, "it's late and I need to make dinner before Dad gets home. Let's continue later. Tuesday work for you guys?" They all nodded. One by one they made their way to the door, Mori pausing to give her another kiss on the forehead. She stopped Daichi, pulling him to the side.

"What do you want?" he growled when the others were out of earshot. Haruhi's eyes widened at his dark attitude.

"What's with you!?" she demanded. "Is this because of our discussion?"

"No!" he said back. "Maybe.. I, I just…. I need some time to think."

"I get that, I do," she softened her tone. "But you don't have to be such a jerk about it!" Her tone hardened again.

"I'm sorry. You know what, just give me some space. I don't need you all up in my business!" he started getting defensive. He headed out the apartment door.

"Fine!" she yelled after him, slamming the door shut. She turned around, leaning against the door and sliding into a crouched position. She massaged her forehead and sighed. "Life sucks sometimes."


	7. Chapter Seven- The Rouge STP

**Authors' Note: So, hello wonderful readers! We are back (not that we were gone that long...but anyway)! Big thanks to all followers/favoriters/reviewers that are still here! You guys are amazing and absolutely rock! We know this is going a lot slower than usual…. and you have all been amazingly understanding. THANK YOU! So some new stories have been posted. don't-even-ask1 now has her new story 'Watchful Eyes' and of course her story 'Life as We Know it' and a few others. uyay, and this is a bit different, has a new story on called 'April Rain' so please check these out, and as always we will keep posting! ENJOY!**

Chapter Seven

The Rouge STP

Daichi rolled over again, groaning when he realised it was already 12:01. He hadn't been sleeping lately, he couldn't stop thinking. If it wasn't about Chinatsu's confession it would be about Haruhi, Chou's proposition, or the unchanging prophecy. It was enough to drive the average person insane, but luckily the average person was not him. He had been able to sleep at least four hours each night, but the lack of sleep dimmed his powers, and he wondered how long it would take for the others to notice.

"Ahem." He shot up into a sitting position, staring at Chou who was now standing in the middle of his bedroom. "Sleeping well, are we?"

He sighed, rubbing the sleepies from his eyes. "I wish." She walked over to him, sitting gracefully on the edge of the bed. She crossed her legs, leaning back to look him in the eyes.

"Have a lot on your mind?"

"Yes."

"Care to share?"

"No, not particularly."

"Good, because I don't have time for your problems," she said, changing to a business-like attitude. She stood up and crossed her arms, a scowl on her lips. "I do, however, have some troubles to add to your list."

"And what might that be?"

"You agreed to kill the little twirp, so KILL her!" she growled. "Believe it or not, we archangels have schedules too. You petty little humans think they are superior beings. Nice try. You're our entertainment. You promised me a show-"

"And I didn't deliver," he interrupted her. Her scowl grew. "So you took the powers you gave me and then some-"

"I did no such thing!"

"You did too. I felt it. That's why I fainted, that was the last bit of pain I could take. You took some of my natural element."

"Fine, you caught me. Where do you think the other elemental power I loaned you came from?" Daichi shuddered involuntarily. He almost expected her to start singing 'Poor Unfortunate Souls' like the witch in the American movie, 'The Little Mermaid', that young Chinatsu loved so much.

"I get it. The point is, that was my punishment."

"But I never got my show."

"But you were paid in full!" he argued, not liking where this was going.

"No, I wasn't. You promised me a show in return for some powers. Some loaned powers." she informed him, stressing on the word 'loaned'.

"That wasn't part of the bargain. The powers were mine."

"I suppose you have learned your lesson then," she said haughtily. "Never bargain with an archangel."

"What is it that you are adding to my list of problems?" he asked. His lack of sleep was catching up to him, and he would have to get to the point if he wanted even a chance of sleep that night.

"Right to the point, then. You aren't killing her fast enough."

"I don't have the power yet."

"I told you how, harness the dark, embrace your power!"

"It isn't enough! Stuff like this takes practice, and I don't even UNDERSTAND it. How can I practice it?"

She glared at him, chilling him to the bone, even a little deeper. She cupped his chin in her hand, tilting it upwards. "Listen here, boy," she spat. For once in his life, Daichi felt he truly understood fear. Goosebumps trailed his skin and shivers went up and down his body as she looked down on him. "I will NOT tolerate NO as an ANSWER! You WILL kill Haruhi Fujioka soon, or I. Will. Kill. You." His eyes widened in fear, and she disappeared in a cloud of dust. He coughed, waving it away, unaware that she hadn't gone far. Unaware that she knew something of interest was about to happen.

Daichi pushed his frustration out of his mind. He was determined to sleep that night. pulling back the rustled sheets, he climbed back into bed, prepared to fight his awakeness again. He had just settled, and was extremely close to being asleep, when a loud crash awoken him. It came from the kitchen, and was followed by the shout, "Shhh! Akio! You'll wake him!" Daichi immediately recognized the voice and name. They were from the new STP, and most likely there to kill or harm him.

"What are we going to do after we kill him?" another voice asked. Okay, they were going to kill him.

"It's too soon to be planning a victory party, Mitsuko," Akio teased the young girl.

"That's not what I mean," Mitsuko whined. "What are we going to do with his, you know, body?"

"She has a point, Akio."

"But Tarou, it's too late to turn back now. The others are already on their way."

"I know, but Chinatsu doesn't know what we are planning, and she mustn't find out. We need to have a plan to keep this from her-" The rest was hushed so Daichi couldn't understand them, but he understood the threat all the same._ "I'll try to keep the STP off your path but no promises."_ Chinatsu's voice came back to him. She tried, but now I have to defend myself. He climbed out of bed and waited.

It didn't take long, maybe five minutes, before they barged in. They were shocked to see him out of bed, but didn't let it faze them. They, too, struck fighting stances. Akio was the first to strike, sending a beam of light straight at his heart. He blocked it with a shield of darkness, but in the five seconds it took he could feel half of his power slip away. He didn't have enough energy to fight. The lack of sleep had been annoying him, and now it might be his cause of death. He sent a wave of darkness over them, blinding them just long enough for him to flee. The closest door was his closet. _The obvious places are always the least checked,_ he thought. He remembered playing hide and seek with Chinatsu. She had always won, and that was why.

He ducked into the closet, closing the door quietly behind him. He heard their shouts of dismay as they recovered and noted he was missing.

"Old leader Daichi fled, huh?" Akio asked himself aloud, and Daichi could here the scowl in his voice. "He's not so strong anymore, I suppose. The witch with a capital B must really be tearing. Him. Down."

"She probably doesn't share his feelings of endearment," Tarou, the other boy, chuckled. "Now let's find him and end him so he doesn't have to live in misery any longer." Daichi shuddered and pressed against the closet wall. It swung out from behind him, and he fell hard on his butt.

"Ouch," he whimpered. He realised that he was standing in a girl's closet with girl's clothes and an Ouran male uniform. He turned around and pushed the closet door open. It opened into a bedroom, and Haruhi was sitting in the middle of the bed. And Haruhi wasn't very happy about being woken up in the middle of the night by a strange man.

It wasn't that she found Daichi particularly strange, but in the dark without her contacts she couldn't recognize him. She made out a male figure and that was it. She shot out a stream of water, trapping him to the wall, and walked closer to him. She was glaring, and scarred him almost as much as Chou.

"H- Haruhi-chan, it's me!" he hissed, trying not to make too much noise. She stepped back slowly, before turning and grabbing the glasses on her night stand. Daichi's face materialised in front of her, so she dropped her hold on him and he fell to his knees.

"What. Are. You. Doing. Here?" she asked, punctuating each word. He groaned, rubbing his sore knees, so she added a quick, "Sorry."

"Shh." He held a finger to his lips. "STP kids next door."

She nodded in understanding. "Alright, but how did you get in here?" He walked towards the closet door, and motioned for her to follow. When they were standing inside, he grabbed the 'wall' that was actually a door, and pulled it open. This revealed his own closet. This also created a loud squeak. His eyes widened and he pulled her away from the closet and back into her room.

"I can't fight, I'm too weak," he explained to her.

"Alright. When they get in here, I need you to loan me your powers."

"I thought you said that almost killed you the last time! And it killed them!"

"I know, but you can't give me too much power at the moment, so it should only stun them. I won't be holding it for as long so I should be fine."

"Are you sure?" The moment he asked her was the moment the three STP agents decided to burst in through the closet.

Haruhi met eyes with Daichi. "I have to be, that's my job." She nodded at him. "Now."

What was left of his dark element found it's way to her. It spun itself around a water beam she had created and was holding back. The three automatically realized what it was.

"Traitor, you would use the same tactic used to kill your father to kill us! That you would let this killer live. That you would leave us for her!" Mitsuko hissed. Her fiery red eyes seemed to be burning. He paused for a moment, her words stung, before continuing. He trusted Haruhi to learn from the past that she regretted, and he trusted her judgment. A beam of fire made it's way to Haruhi's stream of water and darkness, but Haruhi deflected it with another stream of water. When the timing was perfect, the elements combined shot into the three. The immediately collapsed, and Daichi ran to them in fear.

"And?" she asked, looking away, afraid of the answer. He felt for a pulse.

"They're alive."

"Thank God," she let go of the breath she had been holding.

"I thought you were sure…"

"As sure as I could be. You kill someone…. It makes you feel horrible. You wish you were in their place." He stood and joined her. She was staring at the ground, but she could feel his eyes on her. "It happens again, and it still hurts…. but…. it's not the same. You still feel awful, you still wish places were reversed, but somehow it's different. It's not as… extreme. If they had died I would have been killing myself mentally, maybe, maybe even physically. But still, it's not the same. I would have been happy that you were safe. That more of the rebels wouldn't have to be dealt with." Arms wrapped themselves around her, pulling her close. She sobbed into his flannel shirt and he rubbed circles into her back. Guilt filled the pit of her stomach.

"I understand, Haruhi-chan. It's not your fault. I understand."


	8. Chapter Eight- Daichi's Inner Potential

**Hey guys! So we are back… It seems that we've been updating about every other day… I hope this will be continued (except for a few exceptions) but I can't promise anything. Tomorrow is the homecoming game, and the next day is the dance. I AM going to both, so do not expect any updates then. Umm….. check out our other stories, you can find mine by clicking on the link in the story stuff above (by the title), but finding don't-even-ask1 is a little harder. Here's a link. u/4562582/don-t-even-ask1 This chapter brings up some conflict and a little of Daichi's past. Thank you for reading, reviewing, favoriting, following, and recommending. I have a request for reviewers. This was another one of those chapters where we both wrote, and I want to know if you can tell where the writers (us) swapped (hint- it happened more than once). It's up to you if you review about that, or if you even review at all, but I at least would appreciate it (or my curiosity does). Anyways, enjoy! Thanks, uyay**

**So my people (AKA readers), uyay and I are back with the EIGHTH chapter. Like she mentioned, we're updating slower but they are still there. School has settled in and I must do homework and study and whatnot. Because SCHOOL STILL COMES FIRST (for me anyway). While I'm not going to dances, I will still be involved in other activities that will limit my time to write. If any of you have read the start of my Mori/Haruhi story (which uyay advised me on), I don't know when I'll update the second chapter but once I do, then the chapters will be updated regularly, like once every three days. Anyhoo, thank you to all you wonderful people! ~don't-even-ask1**

Chapter Eight

Daichi's Inner Potential

Daichi walked through the graveyard, kicking the occasional stone. He wound his way through the rows and rows of headstones. _So sad,_ he thought. _So many people have died…_ The graveyard was several centuries old and held several old mausoleums in the center. The sun had gone down an hour ago. Scattered lamp posts lined the clean pathways that lead to the graves. They illuminated the landscaped, sending an eerie glow over the tombstones and buildings.

Daichi had come to the graveyard to 'harness his element' like Chou had suggested. He had no idea what to do but figured a graveyard would be a good place to start for a dark mage.

"We are gathered here today," a voice drifted down.

Daichi perked up and looked down at the end of the graveyard. A crowd of people were gathered around a casket, ready to be lowered into the ground._ I didn't know this graveyard was still in use_.

"To mourn the death of our dearly beloved Katuki," the voice continued.

Daichi quickly and silently walked to behind a tree and peered out from behind it. Daichi saw several people dab their eyes with clean white handkerchiefs. Right beside the closed coffin were a man with his arm on the shoulder of a young boy. _The family…_ Daichi thought.

"Katuki was loved by all who knew her and she will be missed by many," the priest continued. "She left behind her husband and her son."

Daichi tuned out the rest of the priest's speech._ She left behind her husband and her son...just like my mom. _The memories of Daichi's mother came rushing back to him at the thought of her. Her bright smile, her laugh, her ability to make his dad laugh, and most of all, every night when she would tuck Daichi into bed. Those memories were the kindest of all the memories Daichi had. His mom would always sit on the edge of his bed, talking for at least thirty minutes before kissing Daichi on the forehead and leaving. After his mother passed away, he hadn't been able to sleep for a week until his father had screamed at him to go to bed when he had again appeared in his father's bedroom.

Daichi blinked and watched as the young boy laid a single white rose on the top of the coffin. He could tell the boy was not crying, just like Daichi hadn't cried. Daichi had wanted to show his dad that he was strong and that he could deal with her death just as good as Hayato did. _I wonder why the boy isn't crying…_

The father laid a rose next to his son's and kissed the top of his head. Daichi felt sadness well up inside him. His father had never shown him any support, especially when Daichi needed it the most.

He suppressed the tears that threatened to fall, and moved down the graveyard paths he hadn't traveled in ages. He took one turn, then another, finally stopping at an old words 'Haruka Marise Shiro | Beloved wife and mother | Never to be forgotten' were engraved in the stone slab. His mother, his beloved mother, now laid beneath the cold hard ground, protected by the earth and this stone. They would have had the dates of birth and death engraved, but his father couldn't bare another reminder of her early death.

_He crouched down next to it, brushing his fingers over the engravings. "I love you, Daichi, you must never forget that." _He remembered so clearly, the day he learned his mom would die_._

_"But mommy, how could I forget?"_

_"I may not always me here to remind you." She was sitting in one of the dining room chairs, and chose that moment to pull the young Daichi up onto her lap._

_"Why not?"_

_"All good things must end," she replied simply. "But I will always love you!" She then went into a coughing fit, and his dad picked him up and brought him to his bedroom so that she could go to theirs._

_"Your mom has lung cancer,'_" his dad had explained later.

_"What's that?"_

_"A bad sickness. She will die soon."_

_"But… She can't die!" young Daichi yelled at his father. Tears were streaming down his face. He may have been little, but he knew what it meant to die._

Tears were streaming down his face freely as he to take anymore, Daichi turned and walked briskly away from the funeral. He exited the rusty, creaking gates and turned down the road.

He knew exactly where to go.

…..TIME SKIP…..

Daichi walked through the halls of Ouran High School, navigating them easily in the dark. He made a turn and walked briskly down the hallway, his footsteps echoing. There was no light except for the dim lights put off by the clocks or rare light. He reached the room he had been heading for and swung open the familiar doors.

He looked around the familiar 'abandoned' third elemental room and found the darkness comforting. It had been a long time since he had relaxed in the darkness. Daichi let his energy expand outward and become one with the darkness.

_Harness my element,_ Daichi thought in his head. _My element is about darkness, sadness, and pain… _Daichi thought back to the memories of his mom. The sadness and regret filled him again.

Daichi took a deep breath and let the emotion well up within him. Carefully, he combined that with his elemental energy and felt the power multiply within himself. Slowly, he extended his hand and created an orb in his palm. The orb swirled with his power and he sighed, feeling the emotions leave his body leaving him with a sense of peace.

Cautiously, Daichi expanded the ball until it was as tall as he was. The emotions and energy poured out of him, much more than he had managed before. The ball grew and grew before Daichi stopped it. Surprisingly, Daichi still wasn't out of energy so he created streams of darkness extending out from the ball and facing all directions. In total, there were twenty arms.

Daichi let the arms extend around the room and felt them inspect everything in the room, from the food in the kitchenette to the stack of notebooks in Kyoya's drawer. The energy expanded until it covered the entire room. Daichi gasped in surprise at his success and the energy came flooding back to him in a flash at his loss of concentration.

The energy overwhelmed his body and Daichi collapsed. He laid gasping for breath on the floor. The energy whirled around in his body, frantically searching to be free again. After the energy finally settled down, Daichi relaxed his tense muscles and closed his eyes. _I cannot believe that just happened…_

"Daichi-kun?" He spun around to see a shocked Haruhi in the doorway.

"Haruhi-chan! What are you doing here?"

"I couldn't sleep, and my dad has some friends over, so I came here to think and maybe catch some shut eye."

"You could have just used the door in our closets, I wasn't using my bed anyways," he joked.

She scolded him, "No! That door does not exist! I don't need you in my room, you don't need me in yours, so no, there is no door connecting our closets. And speaking of not using your bed, why are you here?"

"Same as you. I couldn't sleep so I came here to train," he explained, careful to leave out Chou's proposition. If he was going to kill her, now would have been the perfect time, but he wouldn't.

She walked up to him, grabbing his arm and pulling him over to one of the loveseats. "Training, right," she said sarcastically. "That's why you're burning with fever because you over used your powers. What really happened?"

"That's it, training, I swear!" he defended himself. She shot him a skeptical glance, but let it go. She held a hand over his eyes, and her water energy drifted into him, soothing his headache and cooling his fever.

"You're lucky it's only a small one. I can't take back that you overused your powers, so I could only partially heal you. The fever should be gone in the morning though. That is, of course, if you sleep. She pulled her legs under her and waited for him to move. When he didn't, she laid her head on his stomach.

"Are you sure you should… What about Mori?"

"What about him? I'm not cheating on him, I'm not professing my love to someone else. I'm leaning on you because I'm tired and you have no intention of leaving. It doesn't make us lovers, or in any way more than friends. You've been crying," she said matter-of-factly. "Why?"

"I was thinking about my mother."

"Oh. Didn't you say she died when you were little?" He shifted uncomfortably beneath her. "I'm sorry, you don't have to answer."

"No, it's fine… It was a little over five years ago, when I was ten, from lung cancer." She looked up at him, sympathy in her eyes. But it wasn't pity, he noticed. It wasn't that feeling he despised so much. It was understanding, and it made him realise that she lost her mother too. That it was his father that commissioned the men to kill her. It made him feel like a hypocrite. "My father killed your mother, didn't he." It wasn't a question.

"No, it wasn't him."

"Directly," Daichi added, "but it was him who sent the men. Knowing that makes me feel like such a hypocrite. There I was, wanting to kill you for taking my father, wanting blood for blood, but really, that's what my father's death was."

"No one deserves to have their parent, or parents, taken from them. I was in the wrong, whether he indirectly took my mother's life or not."

"But I was wrong too-"

"But you're not like that now!" she stated, sitting up momentarily before leaning on him again. "And neither am I. We've changed, so let it go. Move on."

"How?"

"It hurts to much to linger on the past. It kills me to look into the future. So do what I do, live for now."

"Why does it kill you to look into the future?" he asked, confused. He would do anything to have a destiny like she did, knowing that he was good, that he was for good.

"You don't know what it's like, to have your destiny planned out for you. My whole life I've been trained for this, and I never knew it until now. All of a sudden, I'm launched into this mess, told here are your friends, here are your enemies. Here's what you must do, here is what you must NOT do. Oh, and you might not live through this. I'm not allowed to have self doubt, because self doubt means that peace might die. But still, the weight of the world is on my shoulders, quite literally, and there isn't someone I can share it with, no one I can give this burden to. I can't decide what I'm going to do with my life, I can't decide anything." She sniffed. "Meeting you, Renge, Nekozawa, and the host club was the best thing ever. That the host club, Renge, and Nekozawa were the ones destined to help me was an upside. But look at us! We aren't supposed to be friends, helping each other."

"You found a loophole, we're fine," he argued back.

She forced a smile at him. "I know, but not everything's that easy."


	9. Chapter Nine- The Plot Thickens

**Authors' Note; We are back, and we are so very sorry for the long period of not updating… uyay's dad is having technical difficulties, so every other week we will not be able to write… :(. On the bright side, we are back now with the Ninth chapter to start us off for October. It's hard to believe that it's been almost two months, isn't it? Let alone that we are on the ninth chapter of our third fanfiction…. Wow. Anyhoo, here it is.. Stories will still be coming about every other day on the week that we can write, so that's good news. Thank you for hanging with us as we've been writing…. Thanks for all of the support…. We think that's about it. Don't forget to check out don't-even-ask1's page at u/4562582/don-t-even-ask1 Especially now that she has her new fanfic that she's working on, called 'Watchful Eyes'. So there it is, ENJOY!~ don't-even-ask1 and uyay**

Chapter Eight

The Plot Thickens

Haruhi groaned as she realised that she left her history book in her locker. The host club decided to relax for a while, they were all stressed over the STPs, and it was getting to them. So, deciding to stay together despite the closed club, they were taking this time to hang out. Haruhi, on the other hand, wanted to study for the upcoming exams. _Summer's almost here, huh?_ Haruhi thought to herself as she excused herself and scurried to her locker.

The lockers had built in master locks, and it took a while for Haruhi to grow accustomed to them. Every now and then she would still enter the combo wrong, and this was the case as her nimble fingers tried again and again to get her locker to open. After the fifth time, confirming her suspicion that the third time was not always the charm, the locker swung open. Unfortunately, her many books found this as an opportunity to free themselves from their cramped placing.

Haruhi ducked, and luckily only a pencil, knocked down by the falling books, hit her. She rubbed her elbow where the pencil had hit her, right on the funny bone, and looked at the mess. Books, hardcover and paperback, were strown all over the floor. Some were bent, but luckily the class textbooks seemed unharmed. She crouched down and started raking them into a neat pile, occasionally bending a cover back into place and turning the books so they were facing the same direction. She pulled her history textbook out of the pile and put the rest of the books back in her locker, a little neater this time to avoid this occurrence from happening again. Straightening, she walked back to the club room.

When she reached the majestic doors to the room, she noted that it was slightly open, unlike how she left it. She also noticed that it was eerily quiet. Haruhi tensed, prepared to attack if needed, and pushed the door open.

On the other side of the door were eight very confused men and a shocked girl. They were facing the door, and when they saw Haruhi they shook their heads as though to shake away a dream, and smiled at her. "What happened?" Haruhi asked them wearily.

"A girl," Mori stated.

"A girl…" Haruhi drew out, confused at the lack of knowledge. She looked to Kyoya, the well known 'shadow king', and sure enough he had his tablet out.

"She is an electric mage, though she doesn't go to Ouran. She knew of us and wanted someone to tutor her in self defense and elemency." Kyoya elaborated. Haruhi nodded slowly, letting his words sink in.

"Did we agree?"

"We told her we would think about it," the twins said.

"We shouldn't turn a princess away!" Tamaki shouted. They all rolled their eyes.

Hani jumped out of Mori's arms and into Haruhi's, shouting, "It's your decision, Haru-chan! Tama-chan may be the leader of the host club, but we already decided that you would lead us when it came to magic." Tamaki slipped into his corner of woe at that comment, earning another line of eye rolls from the group.

"I thought that was just prophecy stuff?" Haruhi exclaimed. She didn't like the attention. Hani shook his head.

"You lead. Most responsible and level headed," Mori said. Haruhi sighed.

"Kyoya always has alternative purpose," Renge added when she saw her friend's doubtful eyes land on Kyoya.

"You really are the best choice," Kaoru agreed.

Haruhi nodded. "Fine, then we'll accept and train her. Hani, Mori, and I will train her in self defense, and Kaoru will train her in elemency. Any objections?" When no one responded, she nodded her head and continued, "Good. Now, I need to do my history homework." With that she carried Hani, she was still holding him, to a couch, knowing that Mori would follow. Hani rushed to a table of cake when she set him down, and Mori sat on the sofa. She curled up next to him, resting her head on his chest, and started studying.

….Time Skip….

"Don't worry about it!" Haruhi insisted, frustrated that she couldn't get those words through her boyfriend's mind. Mori had been planning on walking Haruhi home, they had already made plans, but Hani wasn't feeling the best. It was strange seeing the little senpai sick, but even the cake loving boy was prone to sickness, and Mori felt it was his duty to get him home. On the other hand, Mori felt awful that he was leaving Haruhi, despite her protests that it was in fact, fine with her, that she was more worried about her friend's health.

"I know, I just-" Mori was interrupted as he found Haruhi's lips on his, and he smiled despite himself.

"I will be fine," Haruhi stressed after pulling away. "Trust me on this." She didn't give him room for a reply as she turned and left, calling out behind her, "I love you, and I'll see you tomorrow." She added, at the end, "I hope you feel better, Hani!"

She walked down the hallways, the stairs, across the courtyard, and finally found herself on the sidewalk that pathed her way home. It had almost been a year since school started, but she still found it unbelievable, how big the school was. Still, her instincts were trained and she could walk home in ease, her mind clouded with thought, as she now knew the path by heart. Now, as she walked home, her mind was on her talk with Daichi.

She really hated it, that her life was planned before she was even born. She felt like she didn't have a say in anything, and that thought lead to the feeling that her actions were not her own. She felt like she was watching from the side lines as someone else took control of her life. She didn't feel important, she felt like a tool. She believed in peace. She WANTED peace. But the whole idea of being this important mage, the mage who the world depended on, was scary. She didn't ask for it, she didn't want it.

A hand over her mouth brought her from her thoughts, and she instinctively bit it.

"Ouch!" a shrill voice exclaimed. As the hand was yanked away, Haruhi found this as her moment to turn around, and water whipped at the attacker. She couldn't make out a face before everything went dark. The last thing she remembered was crumpling onto a hard, cold surface.

…

Daichi shot up in his bed as he felt a presence join him. He looked around, eyes darting from one side of the room to another. Finally his eyes settled on a tall, feminine form.

"What do you want?" he asked, his tone cold and hard.

"I am the one who should be asking that, because I believe I have something you would really like to have."


	10. Chapter Ten- Daichi: Good or Bad?

**Authors' Notes: So people! It's only been two days, pretty good right? So, uyay and I bring you chapter TEN. Yes, chapter ten. Amazing right? So big thanks to all those who favorited, reviewed, and/or followed. It means a lot! You guys are amazing and don't forget to recommend to FanFiction friends! ~don't-even-ask1**

**Hey! So here is the tenth chapter that you guys have been patiently waiting for. Sorry about ending with a cliffhanger last time, we couldn't help ourselves. So it's past ten here, so I realize that this is a little late, but it's still within the every other day time zone that I gave you, so I don't feel too bad. Thanks for all of your support. Read and enjoy, uyay**

Chapter Ten

Daichi: Good or Bad?

"Chou," Daichi growled accusingly.

Chou smiled tauntingly at Daichi and walked out of his bedroom. "Nice to see you still remember my name."

"What are you doing here?" he called after her.

When he didn't get an answer, he left his bedroom and followed Chou into the living room. She didn't look up to him as she asked in a bored tone, "Didn't you already ask me that question?"

Daichi nodded and replied, "And I will keep asking until I get a straight answer."

Chou sighed and looked up at him. "I guess I always knew you were instinct driven. That's why I let you live after you lied to me." She paused before continuing, "Following your instincts keeps you alive in this world."

"What are you doing here?" Daichi repeated firmly, refusing to get off track.

Chou grinned maniacally at him and said, "Caught that, did you?"

Daichi didn't reply but settled at glaring at Chou.

Chou rolled her eyes and said, "Fine. Down to business then."

"Thank you."

Chou sat down on Daichi's couch and motioned for Daichi to sit. After he did, Chou said, "I got the girl."

Daichi's breath seemed to catch. "What girl?"

Chou rolled her eyes. "What girl have we been chasing?"

"Haruhi," Daichi breathed.

Chou nodded. "It wasn't hard. I don't know why you weren't able to do it yourself."

"She is powerful!" Daichi defended, his mind racing.

Chou scoffed. "She wouldn't hurt a fly if she could help it. She's weak!"

Daichi resisted the urge to snap back a reply. "So now what?" he finally said.

"Now," Chou started, taking hold of Daichi's wrist in her cold hand. "Now, we go see Haruhi."

"Wha-" Daichi managed before they both disappeared.

…..Time Skip…..

"-t do you mean?" Daichi finished.

When he opened his eyes, Daichi wasn't in his house anymore. Instead, he was in a rundown large room. He seemed to recognize the location but couldn't place it. "Where are we?" he asked.

Chou looked at him and sneered, "You don't remember this place?"

Daichi took a closer look around and noticed the fallen roof, the doors and windows. "It's," he started.

"It's where your dad died, how tragic," Chou mocked. She took off walking towards the front of the warehouse. "Now come on, the water mage is chained over here."

"Chained?" Daichi asked nervously.

Chou pointed to a limp figure hanging in the front corner. "There."

The corner was dark and her hair covered her face but Daichi could tell it was Haruhi. "What are you going to do with her?" Daichi asked nervously.

"Why?" Chou asked suspiciously.

Daichi quickly thought of an excuse. "Um, I wanted to see if I could tell her off for killing my father."

Chou sighed. "Are you still hung up on that?" At Daichi's lack of response, she said, "Fine. But make it quick."

Daichi raced to Haruhi in the corner and dropped to his knees. He held her chin in his hand and lightly slapped her cheek. "Wake up, Haruhi. Come on, come on! Wake up!"

Haruhi's eyes fluttered open and her eyes roamed around, not focusing on anything. "Huh?" she asked dumbly.

"You have to get out of here," Daichi said.

"How did I get here?" Haruhi asked slurring her words.

Daichi shook his head and looked behind him to check on Chou. She was shooting her magic at several rats. "I don't know but I need to help you get out."

"Yeah!" she agreed. "I need to get home and talk to Mori. We wanted to go on a date tonight…" Her voice was tired and slurred, as if she were drugged.

Daichi sighed. "Are you drugged?"

"I don't know but whatever was in that syringe was pretty good stuff!" she cheered.

"Shh!" Daichi hushed while putting a hand over Haruhi's mouth. "Well," he said out loud to himself. "We're not getting you out of here while you're drugged so I've got to come up with another plan…"

Haruhi licked Daichi's palm and Daichi brought it back and looked at her in shock. Haruhi giggled and said, "Your hand tastes like salt."

Daichi stood and walked back to Daichi, only turning around to yell, "And don't you forget it!" Haruhi giggled in reply.

Daichi huffed as he approached Chou. She raised an eyebrow and said, "Well?"

"You didn't tell me you drugged her," he accused.

Chou shrugged. "It's easier that way."

"Not to get any answers out of her!" Daichi argued.

"Oh drop that nonsense already!" Chou chided. "Now go home and tell the club that Haruhi told you that she had to go out of town to check on her dad."

Daichi nodded. "Very well."

…..Another Time Skip…..

"Daichi, why did you call this meeting?" Tamaki asked from the head of the table in the club room at Ouran High School.

Daichi stood and said, "This is going to be a shock, but you guys have got to trust me."

"Where's Haru-chan?" Hani asked. Mori nodded in agreement with the question.

Daichi sighed. "I'm getting to that."

"What's going on?" Mori asked suspiciously, his trained eyes not leaving Daichi's.

Daichi resisted the urge to shrink back from the kendo champion and earth mage's glare and instead met it head on. "Do you trust me?"

"No," Mori said immediately.

Daichi turned to the rest of the club. "Do you guys?"

They all looked at each other uncertainly before Renge spoke up. "Well, Haruhi trusts you, and I guess that's good enough for me," she said uncertainly.

Hani, Tamaki, and Kaoru murmured in agreement.

"Kyoya-senpai?" Daichi asked, nervousness creeping into his voice.

The dark mage looked up to Daichi, his glasses flashing. "I don't know. You have not given us a reason to not trust you, but you have also not given us a reason to trust you."

Daichi nodded. "Hikaru?"

Hikaru glared at Daichi. "I don't know."

"Come on, Hika-kun!" Hani said.

Kaoru placed a hand on his brother's arm. "Come on," Kaoru said. "Haruhi trusts him, so we should too."

Hikaru held the gaze with his brother for awhile before sighing and saying, "Fine. But don't expect me not to be suspicious."

Daichi nodded. "Okay, then I'm going to come right out and say it." He took a deep breath. "Haruhi's been kidnapped by the archangel, Chou."

The whole room erupted at once.

"What?!"

"What happened?"

"I knew you were a traitor!"

"Haru-chan was kidnapped?"

One reaction stuck out though. Mori stood swiftly and in one move, had Daichi pinned against the wall. His arm was across his throat, blocking the air, and his earth magic held his arms and feet to the wall. "You. Kidnapped. Haruhi?" he asked slowly, enunciating each word as if struggling to control himself.

Which he probably was, once Daichi thought about it.

"I didn't!" Daichi protested, his voice weak and breaking. He could feel his body grow weaker without the air. "I swear!"

Mori's eyes hardened. "Sure, just like you swear she's nothing but a friend!" Mori pushed Daichi harder against the wall and Daichi had to gasp for air.

"No, dude," Daichi insisted breathlessly.

The club stood up and all reached out to stop Mori. He roared, "Don't you dare touch me or help him! He's a traitor!"

"Takashi," Hani said quietly. "Daichi didn't do this. He brought her kidnapping to our attention."

"That doesn't make him innocent," Mori insisted.

Hani shook his head and put a calming hand on Mori's arm. "Come on, let's go cool down."

Mori glared at Daichi for a long time before letting him drop to the ground. He stalked off with Hani and left the club room.

No one made to help Daichi stand. Kyoya asked, "What do you mean the 'archangel' kidnapped her?"

"I may or may not have promised Chou that I would… um….. kill Haruhi?" Daichi offered nervously. Though his eyes were hidden by the glare on his glasses, Daichi imagined Kyoya's eyes were filled with anger and distrust. Personally, he couldn't blame him.

"What do you mean-"

"You may or may not have promised Chou that you would kill Haruhi?" Hikaru snarled, finishing his brother's sentence.

"I thought that I would be able to turn the tables on her, but it didn't work. She, she-"

"She kidnaped Haruhi," Nekozawa interjected, anger in his voice.

"This should never had happened!" Daichi growled.

"But it did," Hani stated, walking in the club room doors. "Mori's meditating," he informed them before getting back to business, "and now Haru-chan is gone. What state was she in when you last saw her?"

"She was drugged." Daichi hung his head low, ashamed that he ever allowed this to happen.

"Where was she?" Kyoya pressed, tablet in hand and ready for use.

"The warehouse."

…..With Chou….

Chou watched as Daichi told the club that she had kidnapped the water mage. "Just like I thought," she growled. "That treacherous little snake."

She jumped down from her vantage point and headed towards the warehouse. She would have to change hiding locations, and fast if she wanted to do it without getting caught.

After all, she wanted quite a bit of alone time with the Fujioka girl.


	11. Chapter Eleven- Without Haruhi

**Authors' Note: Hello readers! It's uyay and don't-even-ask1 with the ELEVENTH chapter. Big thanks to all reviewers/followers/favoriters! You guys are amazing! So, getting off that, we'd like to promote the 'Be the Gold' organization, a group for awareness of child cancer. So please go look them up! It's for a good cause, so just take a minute of your day to support them. Also, be sure to check out some youtube videos they have, Thanks and enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter Eleven

Without Haruhi

Mori pushed open the doors to the club room, head in the clouds. He couldn't stop thinking about Haruhi. Her smile, her laugh, and how much he missed her. So far, they had no plan of action, and it drove him crazy. He had just lost the love of his life, and the person at fault was-

The same person Mori found standing in front of him. Daichi. Mori marched up to him, and threw him against one of the walls. "This is all your fault!" he growled. "You let Chou take her! You risked her life! You promised to kill her! The only reason you are still alive is Haruhi. Haruhi, the one who saved your sorry ass, remember her? How could you?" he spat at Daichi. The boy remained silent, which only added fuel to the fire.

Mori swung, a ball of earth around his fist. Daichi did nothing to protect himself, and his chin was met with an uppercut of dirt. And another, and another. He finally whimpered, "Stop." The punches continued. "Mori-senpai, stop!" Daichi's plea was louder this time. Mori paused for a fraction of a second before hitting him again, this time in the gut. Daichi collapsed, but managed to throw his own punch at Mori. Mori stepped back and kicked Daichi in the side.

Or so he thought. "Takashi! Stop!" Hani cried before taking a blow to the shoulder that sent him sprawling on the floor. He sat up and glared at his cousin, tears glistening in his eyes. "How dare you!" He stood up and fled to the hallways.

"What's gotten into you, Mori-senpai?" Renge asked in shock. "Do you think you are the only one hurt by this?" She ran after Hani, leaving Mori to collapse on one of the sofas.

"What have I done?" Mori grumbled to himself, holding his hands over his eyes. "This is turning me into a monster." The others simply watched in disbelief.

…

"Hani-senpai!" Renge called in between pants. "Hani! Please! He didn't mean it! Hani!"

Hani turned around, staring at the panting girl in anger. "Then why didn't he come after me? Huh?" Before she could reply, he was gone.

Renge collapsed in a pile on the floor. She was breathing heavy, and it wouldn't be long before she wasn't breathing at all. _A panic attack, huh?_ Renege thought, tears slowly falling down her cheeks._ Haven't had one of those in a while…_ She held her head in her hands, not bothering to stop her straying thoughts as they went to a certain brunette. She used to have frequent panic attacks as a kid, and Haruhi was always to calm her down. In several occasions, even her father couldn't help her, only Haruhi could. Haruhi was more than a friend, she was a sister, and she felt like she was losing a part of herself now that Haruhi wasn't there._ I can't breathe! I can't breathe!_ Her lungs screamed in pain, but she hardly felt anything.

"Renge? Renge, please, say something. Renge?" She felt herself lifted into strong yet gentle arms, and somehow she knew it was Kaoru. She relaxed into them, yet despite his plea she couldn't bring herself to speak. "Renge, breathe. Renge! Don't do this! Breathe!" _Did I stop? Did I stop breathing? I don't remember._ Her vision began to get hazy. "Renge!" Warm lips met her own, and air was pushed into her mouth, her lungs. She began to push, and soon she was gasping in air. "Thank God!" She felt something warm and wet fall on her cheek, and when she looked up she saw that Kaoru was crying.

She sat straighter, and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I, I miss her."

"We all do," Kaoru murmured as he ran his fingers through her hair. "We all do."

"I lost her for years. It was like losing a sister. I don't want to lose her again."

"You won't."

"You don't know that."

"I do. We WILL get her back. Trust me."

"I do."

"Good. I love you."

She pulled back in shock, and he realized that he had never told her that before, not while they were dating. He cast a worried glance at her, but relaxed when she smiled and pressed her lips to his. "I love you, too." She laid her head back on his shoulder. "Sing to me?"

"What?"

"Haruhi used to sing to me when I freaked out as a kid. It soothed me."

He nodded and took a deep breath. After singing a few lines of a song foreign to her, he started humming. They were both crying, lost in their own thoughts about the same person. Haruhi.

… Time Skip…

"Where are we going?" Kaoru asked as he was dragged down the hallway by his girlfriend. Somehow she had went from crying in his arms to… this. Finally they reached the club room doors, but before Renge could push them open, Mori opened them from the otherside. He rushed passed them, not showing the slightest sign of recognition that they were there. "What happened to him?" he muttered before Renge pulled him inside.

"What's going on?" Hikaru asked as he watched this happen. He immediately got on his feet and walked over to them. Renge snatched his hand, and pulled the twins out the door.

"Where are we going!" they whined. Renge continued to pull them down the halls and outside, then into one of the limos.

"To my house."

"Eww! Why do I need to be here for this?"

Renge glared at Hikaru. "I don't know what's going on in that head of yours, but put an end to that." She looked back and forth between the brothers, her eyes finally setting on Kaoru. "You promised that we would find Haruhi." Kaoru nodded. "Well I don't know about you two, but I say that finding her starts now. I'm not just going to sit here and let her go."

"What does this-" Hikaru was cut off by a glare from his brother.

"We're going to make a plan. The rest of the club is… I think it's best if we start with just the three of us. Hikaru, I know you didn't promise me anything, but this is Haruhi we are talking about. I had a feeling you might want to help," Renge explained with a sigh.

"I do," Hikaru explained. "I just… We're a group! Why aren't the others doing anything!"

"Sometimes, I think, it just hurts too much to do anything," Renge explained thoughtfully.

"What do you mean?" Kaoru asked.

"When Haruhi's mom was killed, I felt so bad that I didn't do anything. It was my fault." Tears started falling down Renge's face. "I had a panic attack, so I wasn't with my father. Haruhi's mom had come to pick Haruhi up, it was her last day training with her, and we were all going to say goodbye. When I didn't show up, my dad left to find me, and that's when STP attacked. When we found Haruhi, she was passed out on the ground." Renge stopped, her words choked by tears. Hikaru and Kaoru quickly pulled her into a group hug, and it was a moment before she continued her story. "I- I wanted so much to help. It hurt! I couldn't be there for her. I blamed myself. I was so busy blaming myself. When Haruhi was realised from the hospital, I was given an opportunity to say goodbye. I didn't go. I let her go without saying goodbye, because I thought she wouldn't want to see me. I was so selfish, thinking that she wouldn't want to see me when really I was just scared of what she would say, how she would react."

"It's okay," Kaoru murmured, kissing her brow. Hikaru was lost in his own thoughts.

"Miss," the driver interrupted the silence a moment later. "We're here."

Renge looked up and nodded, letting herself and the twins out of the back seat. They didn't get a chance to admire Renge's mansion, as she hurriedly brought them to an office room on the first floor. She pushed them into seats, and pulled a pile of poster board down from some shelves off to the side of the room. Laying the paper on the table, she grabbed a handful of pens and pencils and place them on top of the paper.

"Are you ok?" HIkaru asked. Renge hadn't spoken a word sense her breakdown.

"I will be," she smiled weekly. "I refuse to never see her again without at least saying goodbye, and when that happens I plan on us both being old and grey." Kaoru smirked, and nodded in agreement. _She's so strong,_ he thought in admiration. "So, let's plan."


	12. Chapter Twelve- Falling to Pieces

**Authors' Notes: So...uyay and I are not dead. Really. We're just busy (we do have lives…) and finding common time isn't as easy as it sounds. BUT here's chapter twelve for you guys and I hope you enjoy! Thanks to all reviewers/favoriters/followers. You guys make my day. Enjoy! ~don't-even-ask1**

**So… here's the TWELFTH chapter…. The past chapters have been really dramatic.. wow…. ANyways! Thanks for all of your support XD I'm glad to be able to write with others, aka don't-even-ask1, and know that people enjoy our creation. Maybe it's just me being vain, but I've kinda eliminated the idea of you not liking it… I mean, we ARE on the TWELFTH chapter of the THIRD book, and so far no flames, which is pretty awesome, plus you are still reading, which is even awesomer. Yes, awesomer IS a word, at least it is now. So I'm rambling…. Read, enjoy… Comment are appreciated, especially constructive criticism. Check out don't-even-ask1's page, she's awesome….. I'm going to put a link to it in my profile, so you can find it there. Enjoy!, uyay**

Chapter Twelve

Falling to Pieces

They sat around the table, moping. Renge sat in between the twins, Hikaru on her left and Kaoru on her right. Mori sat next to Kaoru, Kyoya next to Mori, Tamaki next to Kyoya, Hani next to Tamaki, and Nekozawa next to him. Daichi was asked to stay home, as ground was uneasy between Mori and him. They all noticed, with a small pang in their chest, that this was the first time that Mori and Hani were separated, besides when Haruhi was around and she was with Mori.

A piece of cake was in front of Hani. He picked at it, but refused to eat it, toying with it with his fork. "This is all my fault," Nekozawa muttered for the fifth time, They turned to him, but their minds were elsewhere. "I should have seen it coming. Now she, now she…" He couldn't bring himself to finish the thought. Hani threw down his fork and stood up. He grabbed his Usa-chan and marched to one of the abandoned sofas.

"I love her," Mori started, kind of surprising the others, "I can't lose her!" He pounded his fists on the table, and tears ran quietly down his cheeks.

"And you think we don't!?" Hikaru screamed at him, outraged at Mori's behavior.

"Hikaru," Kaoru attempted to calm his twin. He turned back to Mori. "We lost a friend. No, worse, we lost a sister." When Renge sniffled, the twins threw their arms around her in a lopsided hug.

"Well, you don't seem to have a problem replacing her, and with her best friend, no less!" Mori retorted.

Renge visibly flinched and leaned away from Mori.

"That was low," Hikaru growled.

Renge angrily ground her teeth and stood, surprising the twins whose arms fell away from her shoulders. "Don't. You. Ever. Talk about. Hikaru. Kaoru. And Haruhi. Like that. Again." her whole body shook in anger as she spoke, and her eyes seemed to glow red.

"Haruhi could never be replaced," Tamaki butted in before Renge could finish. To their amazement, he looked more menacing than her. His whole body trembled, and he glared with more ferocity than they ever thought 'daddy' could muster. "By Renge, by anyone. And none of us could ever replace her in our own hearts. So it's time we snap out of this stupor. We're falling apart! What would Haruhi think if she saw us? Huh? We act like she's dead, but she's not, just kidnapped. Maybe she was our best asset, but we still have the best six mages in Ouran."

"We need her!" Nekozawa screeched. "We can't do this without her!"

"Exactly." Kyoya stood and pushed his glasses up. "That's why-"

"We're going to get her back," the twins finished, also standing up.

"And we have a plan!" Renge pulled the plans she and the twins had come up with out of seemingly nowhere.

Hani leaped from the sofa and to Renge and the twins. "You did all this?" he asked, pulling the plans onto the table. Renge nodded.

Kyoya admired the plans. "This really is quite impressive, and I have already researched the final details." To prove his point, a pile of papers landed on the poster board. The group nodded in approval.

In a sad tone, Tamaki gave his best cheer, "For Haruhi."

The group gave sad smiles and looked at each other. "For Haruhi."

"For Haruhi."

"Haruhi"

"To Haruhi."

"For Haruhi."

"To Haruhi."

"For Haruhi."

…

Daichi looked up at the sky, watching the clouds as they passed by his open apartment window. He jumped, suddenly, as his phone started vibrating. He pulled it out of his pocket and saw that he had a text from Mori.

'For Haruhi'

It was a message of multiple meanings, but he knew. He just knew. He threw on his jacket and shoes, grabbed his backpack, and left the room. Before he pulled the apartment door closed, he cast one more gaze to the open window. _We are coming, Haruhi. We will find you, I promise._ He had every intention of keeping that promise.

He shut the door, locked it, pulled the jacket tighter around himself, and marched to the entrance of the apartment building. He whipped out his cell phone and typed a quick reply to Mori.

'I'm heading out now. Where are we meeting?'

He pressed send and pushed open the front doors. "Oof!" When he looked down he saw none other than Chinatsu laying on the ground.

He held out a hesitant hand to her, and when she grabbed it, he pulled her to her feet. "Sorry." The word came out short, with no certain feelings behind it, as he wasn't sure how to feel. Chinatsu's confession and promise had left him emotionally raw, and even though he had recovered from his back set, he was still uneasy as she smiled up at him. He chose his next words carefully, "What do you want?" Harsh words, but he spoke them with a gentle tone so to cause her no offense.

"Good to see you too," she started sarcastically. "Look, I wanted to apologise. The kids that came after you the other night….. I don't know how they got out from under me-"

"But they did," Daichi interjected, cutting her short.

Chinatsu sighed. "I just wanted you to know that I meant what I said. I will try to keep them at bay, and I'm sorry that I failed to do so. On the other hand, I can't prevent them from going after you and Haruhi forever. They want blood. Quite frankly, I do too…I just-" Daichi raised a hand, and she knowingly stopped in her tracks. He wasn't ready to hear it again. Those words… 'I love you'.

"I understand. You'll be happy to know, then, that you can let your agents know that Haruhi will no longer be a problem. At least not for a while," Daichi informed her. He didn't know why he bothered telling her, he was pretty sure that she already knew.

"What!?" Scratch that, she apparently didn't know.

"She's been kidnapped."

"Chou," Chinatsu murmured, casting a thoughtful glance to the side. She looked back at Daichi, fire in her eyes as she told him, "Count me in. I'll help you take the archangel down."

"What? No," Daichi told her sternly.

Chinatsu just shook her head. "I know you don't want to hear it, but I'll say it again, anyways. I love you, I have since we were kids, and as much as it breaks my heart that you love another…If anybody gets to kill that bitch, it's me, not some stupid archangel."

Daichi winced at the mention of 'bitch' and 'kill', but nodded anyways. "I don't plan on letting you kill Haruhi, but I feel like you aren't going to accept no as an answer, so I'll let you help us. Just don't let the others know, it won't sound good."

Chinatsu shook her head and smirked. "Aye!" She mock saluted him. "Any idea of where I should start?"

As if on cue, Daichi's phone went off. Looking down, he saw that Mori had replied.

'The warehouse. See you there.'

"Anywhere but the warehouse, that's where the club is going now," he informed Chinatsu as he texted back to Mori.

'Yeah'

"Ok, see you later!" Daichi looked up and smiled at Chinatsu's response, waved, and walking past her towards the abandoned warehouse where everything started.


End file.
